This manual, an instruction manual on conducting research on the gender- and sexuality-related perceptions of teenage boys and young men, describes how to conduct research on reproductive health behaviours using “social and sexual scripting": organising and linking together what people think, what they do, and how they are affected by the sociocultural context in which they live, through accumulated responses to a multiplicity of socio-cultural cues. It includes sections on training of interviewers and facilitators, guides for focus group discussions and interviews, data analysis through key themes and thematic analysis, and resources. The document is available in PDF format.

This document is a companion to the document: In Their Own Words: The Formulation of Sexual and Health-related Behaviour among Young Men in Bangladesh, which describes the original research and findings.

More specifically, the document includes:

• Training guidelines describing the major themes, strategies, and activities for a 10-day orientation training for prospective interviewers and participatory research discussion groups and focus group discussion facilitators. The purpose of the training is to provide instruction on the following topics:
  1. Concepts and differentiation between sex and gender, masculinity and femininity.
  2. Concepts of sexuality and sexual behaviours.
  3. HIV/AIDS/sexually transmitted infection (STI) and reproductive health issues.
  4. Research methods with a special focus on qualitative research.
  5. Description of the research project and research methods - adaptation of the Participatory Learning and Action methodology (PLA).
  6. Discussion on participatory research discussion groups, focus group discussions, and interviews and feedback on questions in the guides.
  7. Finalisation of the guides and practice sessions prior to field testing.
• Information on qualitative methodological approaches, particularly focused on PLA methodologies including: role play; free-listing and ranking; Venn diagrams; body mapping; and discussions.
• Key themes and illustrations of thematic analysis.
• Resources pertaining to men at risk.
• Study guides including the screening protocol, participatory research discussion guides, focus group discussion and interview guides, and the anonymous census of sexual behaviours for interviews and focus groups.
• Ethical considerations and consent forms.
• Two resource documents in their entirety: The Interagency Working Group (IGWG) Men and Reproductive Health Task Force, Reaching Men to Improve Reproductive Health for All: Resource Guide and In Their Own Words: The Formulation of Adolescent Sexual and Health-related Behaviour among Young Men in Bangladesh: Summary Report.

Click here for more information about the study on which this guide is based and for links to downloadable support documentation.